To Love a Thief
by StarryNyteThe3rd
Summary: This is the story of Lizzy discovering Narnia and learnig how to love. I will be co-writing this with my friend  GlamourGirl190 this will include her OC and other ideas from her story.  Disclaimer:I don't own Narnia
1. prologue

Prologue

Two figures cut darker shadows into the already inky blackness of the secret room built especially for this night. One was a woman, a Jinn, and the other: her most loyal dwarf, sworn to secrecy. The woman bit down on her cheek to stiffly yet another cry of pain, beads of sweat glistening on her slick forehead. She was determined not to make a sound, though she well knew that not a soul would hear, not this far underground. She hated this child. She hated this child for existing and its father for tricking her. It would come soon.

"I see the head, your majesty. We're almost there."

The woman pushed with all her might, willing the child to come so she could take care of it. Almost instantly, the cries of a newborn baby pierced her ears, shattering the stillness that had formerly settled into the air. She gritted her teeth against the sound, hating how it echoed off the walls. She put the child down on the ground and picked up her wand. Her eyes glinted with determination as she raised it, the lethally sharp end aimed straight at her baby's heart. Soon it would be nothing more than one of the thousands of stone statues in her courtyard. Soon this curse upon her would be gone.

She prepared to plunge her wand into her child, but hesitated when she found her hand to be shaking. Furrowing her eyebrows in anger, she raised it higher into the air, trying desperately to harden the resolve she felt slipping from her fingers. She found herself looking straight into the child's deep brown eyes, feeling her hate and anger being slowly melted away by its innocence. What was it, anyway? She looked it over to see that this baby he had birthed in secret was a daughter. _Her_ daughter. Not anyone else's, her own child that had grown inside her these past 9 months, its existence kept a secret.

She couldn't do it. She did not want this child, but neither could she dispose of it as one would a pestilence. She slowly lowered her wand, cursing her own weakness.

"My queen?" The dwarf asked tentatively.

"BE QUIET!" she roared in a voice so terrible the ground shook above their heads.

The dwarf was silent for a moment before speaking up again. "Send her back to the land from whence she came."

She pondered this for a moment before raising her wand once more; and suddenly a blinding flash of light seared the tunnel, leaving a new stone statue for the Queen to add to her courtyard.

She turned around, shut the door, and vowed to never return, shooting a spell toward the remaining figures in the room as she left.

A bright flash of light illuminated the lonely streets of London, the magic from the spell gathering into a shimmering halo around the tiny form that landed on the sidewalk. It was turning blue with the cold, its cries intensifying with every passing minute.

A matronly old lady came out of a nearby building, wrapping a shawl around her shoulders against the bite of winter. She hurried over toward the wailing baby, not even pausing before taking off her shawl and wrapping the newborn child in it. She hushed it and carried it into the building she had come from, wondering where the beautiful baby girl could have come from on such a night.


	2. Chapter 1

**I'm excited for you to read the first chapter and the second is currntly a work in progress. Hey if you wouldn't mind taking the time to reveiw this it will motivate me and my friend to update sooner thank you. Also i don't own Narnia**

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><p>Chapter 1<p>

The hustle and bustle of a train station provided the perfect opportunity. These people were all so busy, so preoccupied. I always hated doing this, but I was currently between jobs. Being a 17-year-old high school drop-out tends to make finding jobs pretty hard, if not impossible, to find. My whole family was depending on me to get enough money home tonight to last us through the week. There hadn't been a dinner last night, and I was determined to not let that happen again.

I smoothly danced my way through the crowd, a confident, slightly devilish smile on my lips. The occasion was a rare one when I saw someone with a substantial amount of money, but one could always hope. I knew exactly what I was doing – this wasn't something I was new at. My dark brown eyes skipped over the many school boys and girls, knowing that none of them would have enough money to make the stealing worthwhile.

I barely noticed the blonde boy I bumped into as I moved through the crowd lifting a few wallets as I went, but I did a double take when I realized I held his wallet. Which was completely empty.

_Whoopsie._

Old habits die hard; I usually used the whole bump-into-them strategy, so it had become second nature to me. I felt the familiar sting of a guilty conscience, though this time it was much more magnified. Thinking fast before he completely disappeared into the crowd, I slipped a pound into the wallet and started off toward him. He didn't even seem to notice he was missing anything, which I attributed partly to luck, partly to skill. Not to boast or anything. I walked up to him, making sure my face was the perfect little picture of innocence as I lightly tapped him on the shoulder.

"You dropped this."

He turned around, looking perplexed and wary as he looked at me, holding up his wallet in my hand. He looked right into my eyes and I was surprised at how clear his own blue ones were. I didn't look away or even flinch under his penetrating gaze; I simply handed him the wallet and accepted his skeptical 'thank you,' never losing my cool. We both turned and walked away and that was the end of that.

I was pretty sure I'd gotten enough to pay for dinner, even though I'd given away that one pound. That was one of my major weaknesses – if I was someone worse off than me or in need of a little money, I never could resist giving them a hand. Darting into a bathroom, I took a look at my loot, making sure I didn't completely clean out the wallets I'd snagged and only took what I needed.

Once I'd finished, I wiped the wallets down so I wouldn't leave evidence and dropped them off at the guard station so they could be returned to their owners. It felt like it was getting to be somewhere around 5 o'clock in the evening by now, and a quick glance at the clock on the dirty wall of the subway station confirmed my guess. I sighed and darted out of the subway station; I would be more than a little late getting home. Hopefully my demon of a foster mom, Maria, wouldn't raise all hell before I got back. She had a habit of doing that.

Instantly, my mind flashed to my 5 siblings. Foster siblings technically, but none of us bothered with that detail. I sped up my pace to a jog, slowing down only when home came into sight. I couldn't stop a smile from brightening my face when my foster dad came into sight, dressed in his uniform and standing outside the fancy hotel he worked at as a doorman. The job sounded like it should pay a decent salary, but that's a common misunderstanding. It actually pays peanuts, especially with 7 mouths to feed.

"Hey sweetie, how was your day?" Charles, my foster dad was always so chipper, a cheery smile almost always on his fair-skinned face. Sometimes people commented on how similar we looked, what with our almost identical black hair and all. Only difference was that mine was longer than his, reaching down a little past my shoulders.

"Alright, and yours?" I answered, greeting him with a hug.

"Normal. Can you go around back and help Maria?" Charles had absolutely no idea how much of a witch-with-a-b Maria was to me and the other kids, she put on the sugary sweet attitude whenever he was home. The kids and I just didn't have the heart to tell him the truth.

"Sure. See ya." I waved goodbye and headed around to the back entrance that led to the employee quarters. At least the hotel provided a place for its employees and their families to live, even if the pay was awful. I frowned when I heard a raised voice screeching as I came up on the door to our little place.

I pushed open the door and walked straight into chaos. The girls, Robin and Lily, were huddled in a corner playing with some paper dolls I'd given them yesterday, trying to drown out Maria's furious yelling. My eyes shifted from them to the center of the room, where Barney, Marshall, and Ted cowering in front of a livid and screaming Maria.

"How could you be so bloody stupid?" she screamed at them, waving her arms around like the madwoman she was. Although this happened nearly every day, I couldn't help but wonder what is was the boys had done. But no matter what they'd been up to, she didn't need to be yelling at them like that, so I walked over to defend my brothers. Obviously, since we're all in foster care none of us are related, with the exception of Marshall and Lily; they're twins.

"What happened this time?" I asked innocently, trying to keep my voice as respectful as I could, not wanting her to fly completely off the handle.

"What did they do? Do you want to know what these little brats did? Well, I'll tell you!" she spluttered, her face slightly purple from rage.

"They were playing some stupid game of theirs -"

"Cops and robbers?" I put in, only realizing I'd cut her off after I'd spoken. Then again, I had no respect for the woman, so why did I care if I cut her off?

"Who cares! They woke me up from my nap!"

I struggled to keep my jaw from hitting the floor. She was screaming at them for something as little as this? But I didn't want her to get any more upset, so I kept my voice even.

"Boys will be boys, they didn't mean any harm." I turned to the three boys, acting as the mediator once again.

"Boys, apologize for waking up Maria."

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Maria," they chimed in unison, looking grateful that I'd stepped in.

"That's not good enough!" she shouted, making all of us wince from the volume of her voice.

"That's one lick for every minute you stole from my sleep, which means seven licks a child!"

"NO! Don't you dare touch them!" I screamed. Maria had crossed the line, and I was not going to stand for it.

"Go to your room, and take the girls with you," I ordered, not taking my eyes off Maria. The five kids scurried off, and I lowered my voice so they wouldn't hear.

"That is cruel, Maria. They're only little boys; you need to calm down. Besides, you should be working." I didn't expect her to hear reason, but I never stopped trying. It always bought my siblings the time they needed to slip away from her wrath.

"I'm the adult, and I'm in charge," she spat, her face looking more and more like a big angry grape with each passing second.

Just as I was thinking of a clever little retort, Charles walked through the door. I knew she wouldn't touch the children with him home, so I turned and walked out.

"Everything okay, girls?"

Maria was quick to reassure her husband, saying, "Yes of course, darling. How was your day?"

I couldn't resist rolling my eyes as I walked into the boys' room. I have to admit, that woman could change her tune quicker than a blink.

"We're really sorry, we didn't mean to wake her up," whimpered Ted. He was the youngest of us all, and hadn't gotten hardened to Maria's temper just yet.

"It's alright Ted, she's just cranky." I walked over to him and gave him a hug he sorely needed, smiling when his little arms tightened around my neck.

"I'm hungry, Lizzy," whined Robin.

I gently unwrapped Ted's arms from my neck and stood up.

"Maria should be starting on it soon. Charles just got home, so go ahead and say hi." They hurried out and greeted our foster dad while I hurried outside, heading straight for the grocery store to get the food for next week. I used to work there, but I'd gotten fired for being late one time too many.

I shivered as the cool evening night air hit my bare arms, sending goosebumps travelling all over me. Short-sleeved shirts were not the best idea for a chilly fall night like this, but I didn't care enough to go back and change. Technically, this little errand could wait until tomorrow, but I just couldn't stand to be around Maria any longer. It was sickening how she fawned over Charles when he was home, and it was even more frustrating that he never saw through it. I guess he's just too nice for his own good.

I sighed heavily as I opened the grocery store door, pushing my thoughts away for the moment. Instead, I focused on picking up the items we'd need, trying to make sure I didn't overspend. Not an easy task when you need enough to feed seven people for a week. I hesitated a second as a flash of green fabric caught my eye. My uniform was still here, right where I'd left it. Hmm…

After checking to make sure no one was around, I put on my old uniform and went over to the check-out counter. This should help bring the cost down a little. I rang myself up with the employee discount, though that all-too-familiar pang of guilt hit my stomach when I did. I only did things like this because I wanted to take care of my family; I wouldn't do this if I had a choice. They didn't even know. I shook my head and just tried to shrug it off.

Just as I was turning to go, someone came up to me holding a few items. Crap, the uniform. Oh well, I knew what to do anyway. I looked up to see familiar-looking blonde hair and crystal blue eyes. Now where had I seen this kid before…

"Hey," I said with a smile, ringing up the items for him.

"Do I know you?" He certainly wasn't shy, that much was certain. Where had I…OH! Right, the train station. Well, hopefully he didn't remember where he'd seen me.

"No, I don't think so. I'm Lizzy, what's your name?" I said, flashing him a smile.

"Peter. I'm going to academy with my siblings."

"Sounds fun, but there's no way it's as glamorous and educational as a job here at the store."

Peter grinned at my sarcasm before retaliating.

"Of course not. Spending all day looking at produce – highly difficult."

"Hey, that's not all I do," I protested with a twinkle in my eye. He raised an eyebrow in response before I spoke again.

"Sometimes I glance over at the bread stand over there." My mouth was cocked in a flirty little smirk, which only widened when Peter chuckled.

"Ah. Well, that changes things, doesn't it?" We shared a smile as he waved goodbye and turned to go. I chuckled silently, shaking my head, and turned back to the counter.

"So I'll see you around, then?"

I turned around to face him, covering my mild surprise at his question with another slightly flirty grin.

"You say it like a question." I paused a moment, watching him shrug nonchalantly, before meeting his eye.

"Meet me back here tomorrow night, same time." I was a little surprised at my boldness, but hey, he was kinda cute. Peter agreed and then left, just as the manager stumbled in from the back. For a second I started to panic, but then I smelled the whiskey on his breath. And that's saying something, because this guy was several feet away.

"Hey, girl! Didn't I fire you?" he growled, his words slurred together so much I could barely understand him.

"No, I was on leave to take care of my siblings," I lied. If this guy was **this **drunk, he'd be completely fooled. Luckily for me, I was right.

"Alright then. Be here tomorrow - on time."

I nodded and walked out of the store, thanking my lucky stars that he'd been drunk enough to fall for my little fib. The walk home went by quickly, especially since I had something to think about other than my family.

That blonde-haired boy – Peter – was quite an interesting guy. Not many people would look me straight in the eye, much less joke around. I guess sometimes I can give off that don't-mess-with-me vibe, but whatever, right? I hoped he hadn't remembered that he had, in fact, seen me before – at the train station. He'd looked skeptical when I'd handed him his wallet, like he didn't really believe that he'd dropped it. And that was another thing: he'd seen through me way too easily for comfort. I'd had to do that before – handing someone their wallet back – and everyone else had been completely fooled by my nice-girl face. And he hadn't. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to see him again…but then again, I could use the opportunity to practice the delicate art of keeping secrets. Not that I didn't get practice, but I'd be an idiot to turn down the opportunity of matching wits with someone who was a lot sharper than most people I came across. A smile stole across my face as I approached the door to my family's humble abode and stepped inside.

Everyone greeted me from the table; Maria must have finished getting dinner ready while I'd been gone. I said my hellos and put the bag of groceries on the floor before sitting down and eating the usual meager dinner.

Everyone seemed to be in a good mood, and conversation flowed uncharacteristically well. Even Maria seemed less phony than usual, and that's saying a lot. I decided to analyze the situation later and just enjoy it for right now. Dinner passed quickly with all the good-natured chatter, and before I knew it, it was the kids' bedtime.

We all said goodnight to each other and to Charles and Maria before heading off to our respective rooms, or cubicles rather – they were too small to be called rooms. The girls, Robin and Lily, were already asleep in the small bed the three of us girls shared by the time I was ready to go to sleep. I smiled fondly at their sleeping forms; although they were tiny little slips of girls, they still seemed to be able to take up most of the bed. Gently, so as not to wake them, I scooted onto the sliver of bed left and swiftly fell into a deep sleep.


	3. Chapter 2

**Hello my readers sorry it took so long to update. I would like to thank my reviewers your are wonderful. Rember more reviews=faster updates.**

**thenameless221 :this is good wirfht more**

**thank you you make me smile**

**Gentle Blossom :I love it! Please continue. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on this ons! Kudos to your great grammar and description.**

**That's so sweet i'm glad you like it**

**princess emma of narnia :update asap**

**I will try**

**eowyninlove :I love the way she meets Peter:) keep writing!**

**thank you :)**

**MCH :Like the way you set this up and introduce us to her family and have her met Peter. Update please.**

**Thank you and we will do our best.**

**eowyninlove :so was it the dwarf who got turned into a statue? And if he did then did he get sent to london too since it said she shot a spell toward the remaining figures in the room. I would add another sentence to clarify this but other than that looks good!**

**In the prologue the dwarf did get turned into a statue, thank you for your input.**

**MCH More please.**

**Oooh Tay**

**princess emma of narnia :update asap**

**Working on chapter 3**

**disclaimer: as my friend likes to remind me i don't own Narnia**

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><p>Chapter 2<p>

I slowly trudged along the street to my first day back at the store. I had a feeling I was in for a long, long day, but at least it would bring home money. I was in no position to complain about a boring job, though I must say I was still tempted. I sighed and flicked a stray piece of my ebony hair back behind my ear. Stormy gray clouds were gathering overhead. Another rainy day was coming. England could never complain about a lack of H20.

My feet carried me to my job, stopping long enough so I could pull open the somewhat dirty door. My boss was actually more drunk today than he'd been last night. Which is saying a lot. Not that I really cared how drunk the guy was - it wasn't like he'd ever be sane enough to realize I had indeed been fired, although the part about my siblings was true.

Somehow, all the boys had managed to get sick at the exact same time, and leaving them alone didn't seem like the brightest idea in the world. After all, as I'd told Maria, boys will be boys. I'd tried to ask for time off to look after them, but my boss wouldn't hear anything of the sort. That night, I'd decided to heck with the boss's orders, I was going to take care of my siblings. That's what family is supposed to do, for heaven's sake! Anyhow, when I'd shown up at the store hours late, my boss had been beyond angry. I must say, if his anger hadn't been directed at me, it would have been quite comical to see his face go through that many shades of red and purple in the span of a few seconds. He'd started yelling at me like I'd started World War III or something, and his breath had reeked of the sour stench of alcohol.

I'd stood my ground the entire time; I was used to an adult screaming at me. Maria did it all the time, though it was usually more directed at the six of us in general rather than just me. I'd flinched a little when he began waving his arms around like a madman, but I still didn't move until he bellowed out that I was fired and ordered me to get out. I'd been a little frightened, but hell would freeze over before I let it show.

That hadn't been all that long ago, but yet here I was, working at the same place once again. Maybe I'm nuts, but I think it's just that I prefer getting money to buy food the honest way. Anyhow, I adjusted my uniform and stepped behind the counter just as my boss stumbled out of the storeroom in the back.

"Good, you're here," he mumbled, completely drunk as always. How that man is even standing right now is beyond me…

I nodded curtly and the day began. It started out slow and dreary, with a steady drizzle of rain lulling me into tranquility. I was sure the day would be one of the most boring days of my life. Clearly, my memory was faulty about working here.

Around noon, a steady stream of people was coming in and out of the store. Even though there were other employees besides me, I was still kept busier than a bee. Someone always needed help reaching this or finding that, plus the obvious need to check out. All the employees were constantly running around, myself included.

There was one lady who seemed utterly clueless as to where to find anything. I momentarily wondered if she even knew where her own face was, but that thought seemed a little mean even for me, so I tried to think nicer of her. It probably wasn't her fault she was so oblivious.

I tried to be patient, but I became increasingly irritable as the day went on. Maybe that's another reason I was fired – I found it difficult to deal with people who were rude and, well, just plain stupid. Someone always needed me, and I began to wonder if they were purposely making sure I stayed as busy as humanly possible. Fetch this, check for that, shelf this, ring up that. It went on and on and as my patience wore down, so did my appearance. At the end of the day, as I was going to the storeroom to put more bread in the bread stand, I caught sight of myself in the window.

_Yikes._

This was not my best day. I mean, I don't obsess over how I look, but looking like a bus ran into me isn't on my top list of priorities. My hair was a frazzled mess in its ponytail, my uniform was rumpled and wrinkled, and dust from my previous trips to the storeroom had settled on my face. In short, I was a mess. Oh well, it's not like there's someone I'm meeting or anything.

Wait…darn it all! Peter! I'd only just met the guy, but I didn't fancy the idea of looking like a train wreck when he got here. How much time did I have? I threw my glance up at the clock. An hour! I had one hour before that boy got here, and if I didn't get my silly little self home as quickly as possible, I'd look ridiculous.

With that thought in mind, I slipped out the back door and flew down the street towards home, the light rain no longer falling from the grey sky. I skidded to a stop on the wet concrete sidewalk in front of the door at the back of the hotel, arms flailing and hair flying. Throwing open the door, I raced up to the room I shared with the girls and freshened up.

I frantically combed my frazzled hair and straightened out my uniform, determined not to be late. I'd been the one to suggest Peter and I meet up, after all. Ugh, where was my common sense? I'd almost robbed the guy; did I really think we could be friends? Whatever, he didn't know that. And I had no intention of telling him. It had been a pure accident.

By now I'd managed to make myself at least some semblance of presentable, and I slipped out of the house as quietly as I could, careful not to wake Maria. She always had to have an "afternoon nap" right about now. She always gave some excuse like needing more "beauty sleep," or something along those lines. I will never understand how Charles doesn't see through her…love is blind, I guess.

A shy, hesitant sun began to peek out from behind the clouds as I scurried back down the street, slipping every now and then in the occasional puddle left over from this morning's rain. The air smelled and felt damp, and yet everything felt fresh.

I had a feeling Peter would be here any second, so I headed around to the back door. I walked into the store at the same time Peter did, but he came through the front door. Luckily, he hadn't noticed me yet, so I took a minute to catch my breath. I wasn't out of shape, but it had been quite a run from home to here, especially with the wet and slippery sidewalk to slow me down.

Peter was looking for me though, so I forced myself to stand up straight and walked casually over to him.

"Hey there." I waved at him as he turned around, a smile on his face.

"Hey. So, when do you get off work?"

My gaze flitted over to my boss, who was currently having a rather animated conversation with his whiskey bottle. Fighting the urge to laugh, I turned back to Peter.

"Now."

He looked a little skeptical though, so I rolled my eyes and headed over towards my _totally_ sober boss. That was sarcasm, by the way.

"Alright, I'm done for the day, okay? Hold down the fort until I get back tomorrow morning." Mr. I'm-so-wasted-I-have-no-idea-what-the-heck-is-going-on just grinned at me, and I took that as an 'Okay, you can go.' Why was it that I complained about my boss being constantly drunk? I don't think I ever want to find a competent boss. Ever. Okay, maybe sometime, but right now I was perfectly content with the one I had. More than content, actually. My boss didn't even seem to realize I'd run home and gotten myself cleaned up.

Shaking my head to myself, I walked back over to Peter. He raised his eyebrows in mild amusement as I walked past him and out of the store. I turned halfway around when he hesitated to follow.

"You coming, or what?" I threw him a flirty grin, to which he responded with one of his own. My smile grew a little when he followed me out of the store, heading in the direction of the park.

"You know, I don't really know that much about you." I met Peter's inquisitive gaze with a twinkle in my eye.

"You know my name."

"And that's hardly anything."

"What do you want to know?"

"Well…do you have any siblings?"

"I have five foster siblings." I paused to take in the beauty of the park. The grass was green from all the rain and the leaves of the trees were only just starting to turn. The air was still slightly humid, but it had a slight chill to it, though not enough to make it uncomfortable to walk about in short sleeves. The sun continued to play hide-and-seek like Lily was fond of doing, its warm rays only gracing a few lucky patches of earth. Paths wound their way around the park and surrounded the pond that sat towards the center of it all. Older men sat on the benches reading the newspaper, mothers watched their rowdy children play tag on the grass, and some of the young girls wove daisy chains for their hair.

My gaze traveled upward to see a robin returning to its nest carrying small twigs in its beak. I let a tiny smile twitch on my lips at the tiny, orange-chested bird carefully added the fragile bits of wood to its nest, its beak arranging them until they were just so. Seemingly satisfied with the day's work, the robin perched in its bed of twigs and began to preen. So simple, the life of a bird.

"What are their names?" Peter's voice called me back from my world of daydreaming.

"Hm? Oh, there's Ted, Lily, Marshall, Robin, and Barney. Ted's the youngest, and also arguably the sweetest. He's five. Lily's six, and her red hair really isn't a lie. She loves to play hide-and-seek, and she's really good at it too. Marshall is her twin, but he's more like a laid-back teddy bear. Robin…well, she's just really ambitious for an eight-year-old. And that brings us to Barney, the ten-year-old evil genius. But I've been doing all the talking, haven't I? What about your family?"

"I have three younger siblings. Susan's the oldest after me, and then there's Edmund, and Lucy's the youngest. Susan's very logical and practical, but she's strong. Edmund is loyal, brave, and pretty reasonable too. He can be a bit of a jokester at times though. Lucy has the most faith of all of us, and she's adventurous too. Oh, and she loves animals."

"They sound wonderful."

"They are. Hopefully you can meet them soon, if you like."

"I wouldn't mind that in the slightest." A pause followed as we headed towards the pond.

"What's your favorite color?" Silly question yes, but I wanted to get to know him.

"Hm…red, I guess. Yours?" He looked a little confused that I'd asked about favorite colors, but he played along.

"Blue. Not a dark blue though, a forget-me-not kind of blue." I stopped talking as I admired the sun glinting off the smooth glass surface of the pond, broken only by the occasional cattail. I glanced at Peter out of the corner of my eye, furrowing my brow in confusion when he bent down. But my confusion gave way to a smile as Peter held up a pale blue flower with four petals.

"This kind of blue?" My brown eyes met his crystal blue orbs as I accepted the flower. I nodded and let my gaze fall to the ground, feeling a slight blush creeping up into my cheeks.

_Oh for goodness' sake, shake it off!_

Following my own advice, I brought my eyes back up and continued walking around the pond.

"So...what do you plan on doing once you graduate?"

Peter paused for a second to think before answering.

"I was thinking about a career in medicine, but I haven't quite gotten everything figured out yet. What about your plans?"

"Um…" _Contemplate that very question?_ "I haven't given it much thought to be honest. I want to go back to school eventually and get a stable job, and then I guess I'll see where life goes from there." My gaze was briefly claimed by some guy with the biggest hair I've ever seen in my life. "Hey look over there. I think that guy has enough hairspray for an entire circus."

The brief sense of triumph that swept over me when Peter chuckled quietly was quickly replaced by thoughts of how dorky that must have sounded. We walked and talked a little more before we noticed how dark it was getting.

"Shoot, I'd better get home." Hopefully Maria hadn't done anything terrible to the kids. Peter nodded and offered to walk me back. I hesitated a second, wondering if it was a good idea. I didn't like people to know about my…family situation if I could help it. But I had a feeling I'd be able to gently shoo him off before it got to that. And so, I accepted his offer.

All too soon, we arrived at the hotel. Charles was working the door. Thinking fast, I planted a quick kiss on Peter's cheek and said goodbye. I almost giggled when I saw the tips of his ears turning pink as he said his own goodbye before walking off with a little smile on his face.

Once he had turned the corner, I turned and walked up to Charles to say hi. He didn't respond with words; he just gave me that infamous we're-going-to-talk-later look. Grinning to myself, I nodded in understanding and headed back to our quarters.

I took care to not make a sound as I snuck in and closed the door behind me. No one was in the common room, and the place was dark. Maria and the kids were probably sleeping.

I went to the room I shared with my sisters, changed out of uniform, and got ready for bed. It was strange, the house being so quiet. I was used to enough noise to wake the dead, and now it was utterly silent.

Just as I was about to lie down and fall asleep beside Robin and Lily, Charles came in and motioned me out to the common room.

"Who was that young man?" His voice wasn't accusatory, it just sounded like a protective father's.

"That was Peter. I met him the other day, but he'd just a friend. We were just walking around the park and talking."

"And that's where you got that flower, yes?" Amusement and also care twinkled in his warm brown eyes as my gaze flitted down to the little four-petal flower I still held.

"Um, yeah…no biggie though."

"Ah. Okay, I get it. You like him, but you don't want to tell me anything. Do you want me to leave?"

"Oh no, I don't like like him, it's not like that. There's really nothing between us, I promise. Besides, I'm not the romantic type."

"Alright sweetie. Goodnight then." Charles grinned and hugged me goodnight before we both went off to our respective rooms.

I was careful to not make a lot of noise getting into the bed with Robin and Lily, even though they were, as per usual, taking up most of the bed. I gently planted a goodnight kiss on each of their foreheads before letting my head fall back onto what was left of the pillow.

Sleep had almost claimed me when a sinister whisper wove itself through the silence of the night. I shot up in my bed, my blood turning to ice inside my veins. I couldn't quite make out what the heck the whisper was saying, but it was creepy – with a capital 'C.'

Almost afraid to listen, I strained my ears to try and hear. I was instantly sorry.

"Come home…"

_What in the name of heaven almighty?_

I fought the urge to shriek bloody murder. It was like something out of a bloody horror story! I gulped and slid down under the covers, curling up into as small a ball as I could. My heart pounding loudly in my chest, I waited and prayed for sleep to come. And eventually, it did.

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><p><strong>Review, Review, Review<strong>


	4. Chapter 3

**Gentle Blossom-Another great chapter! :D keep it up. I have a few questions. Did you get Lizzy's foster siblings' names from the character of How I Meet Your Mother? And when will Lizzy be in Narnia?**

**Yes I love that show and to answer your next question soon ;)**

**MCH-Interesting I'm waiting for the next chapter. Like the way you describe her boss very funny.**

**Thank you! :p**

**eowyninlove- Another chapter! Come home? thats kinda creepy, actually really creepy. aww is she gonna have to leave all her foster siblings?**

**I was going for creepy and more will be explained later.**

**princess emma of narnia- update asap**

**Ok I will **

**RedRose252 AKA Mello the 2nd - "Come home"? Is she off to narnia? O.o she's going with them to narnia isn't she? She's from narnia and she's gonna go there!**

**Possibly ;)**

**I'm so sorry it took a lifetime to update but I am over halfway done with chapter 4 and will be up soon and just a reminder disclaimer I don't own Narnia**

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><p>Chapter 3<p>

I forced my eyes open the next morning with no little reluctance; last night had left me more than a little on edge. Whatever, it was probably just my imagination getting the best of me.

I tried to blink the fog of sleep from my blurry vision when a gentle knock sounded on the door. I fought the urge to grumble about wanting more sleep and simply muttered a quiet, "Come in."

My morning grumpiness all but vanished when Charles entered with a cheerful grin on his face, looking quite crisp in his doorman's outfit.

"Good morning, sweetie. I already woke up the boys for you, but it'd mean a lot if you could keep the kids quiet. Maria has a migraine." I had to admire the sincerity with which he loved that woman; but he also had no idea who she really was. Not that he really needed to know.

"Okay, Charles. Have a good day at work." I smiled brightly as he gave a little wave and left, heading off to work so he wouldn't be late. Unlike me, punctuality was one of his strong suits.

Stretching one last time, I hopped out of bed to start the challenging task of getting all six of us kids ready for the day. I gently shook Robin and Lily awake, coaxing them out of bed with the promise of breakfast waiting for them when they got out of the room.

Robin was easier to get up, and even helped me get Lily out of the clutches of sweet slumber by tickling her until she gave up trying to squirm away without leaving the comfort of the warm bed.

"Do we have to go to school, Liz?" whined a bleary-eyed Lily, still groggy from just being awakened.

"Yes Lily, but I've got a special treat for breakfast if you hurry and get out there."

Lily grumbled unintelligibly, but she did start getting her school clothes on, so I headed out of the room to get breakfast started and check on the boys. I walked out into chaos. Muted chaos, but chaos nonetheless.

"I'll get you!" Barney whisper-screamed. I have to admit I was impressed; it couldn't be easy to sound like one was yelling without actually reaching that volume. Despite my efforts against it, a laugh escaped my throat at the unending creativity of my little brothers. A few days ago, I'd told them the story of Peter Pan, and now Barney had fashioned a sword for himself out of cardboard scraps as well as a hook. Ted was dressed head-to-toe in green, none of the various shades matching of course, but it looked adorable on him nonetheless. Pride swelled in my chest when I saw the two of them playing their little game; it was nice that Barney had let Ted, the youngest, be Peter Pan. Marshall was clad in Barney's old pirate costume he'd found several Hallows Eve's ago, but it was so big on him that he could barely walk. But it was fun to watch him try to, especially wielding his own makeshift sword.

It was little wonder I could never find it in me to leave and try to live on my own, though it was the thing I wanted more than anything else. I loved the kids too much, and Charles too. If I didn't have the five of them to look after, I'd have hightailed it clear out of this foster home. But my conscience wouldn't let me do that, and I didn't fight it. I'd be eighteen soon though, and I'd be a legal adult. But I'd think of something; I always did.

I let my thoughts trail off as I stood and watched the trio of them playing with a smile on my face before I realized how late it was getting.

"Alright boys, it's time you got ready for school."

"Geez Lizzy, you ruin everything," complained Marshall, a pout pinched on his little face.

"I know, I know." I grinned playfully and swept him up in one arm and Barney in the other, trapping them both in a one-armed bear hug. They laughed and squirmed in my arms as Ted stomped one of his tiny feet, a scowl on his face.

"Hey, what about me?"

I set Marshall and Barney down and tossed little Ted into the air, planting a kiss on his mop of brown hair as I caught him. After holding on to him for a minute, I set him on the ground as well.

"Now go on, time to get dressed."

The three reluctantly went off to their room to do as I said. I was the only one who could get them to do as I said without a big hullabaloo. I headed to the kitchen area, opening the somewhat tattered curtains to let the morning sun shine into the room. Tiny particles of dust swirled and danced through the rays, looking like specks of gold in the light. It reminded me of a time a few winters ago.

A blizzard had covered the entire city in a blanket of white, powdery snow and drifts of the stuff reached four feet tall in places. All the factories and schools were closed, and the roads were impassable. For days and days tiny flakes of snow swirled through the frosty air, settling on everything and everyone they saw. The sun was a thing of the past, and a thick blanket of grey clouds constantly covered the sky.

I had only just turned thirteen, but this was only the third time I'd ever seen snow, and the first time I'd ever been in a blizzard. It was just Barney, Marshall, Lily, and I living with Charles and Maria – they hadn't taken in Robin and Ted yet. I was in awe of the white powder that was coating everything in sight and I wanted more than anything to go out in it. It was so beautiful that I just had to see it for real, not just from the dirty windows. But Maria wouldn't hear of it; she was certain that I'd catch pneumonia and then she'd be stuck taking care of me. Charles didn't have to work, but Maria got a migraine so he was taking care of her.

That night, the snow was all I could think about. I couldn't sleep; I just stood at the kitchen window looking out at the snowflakes as they danced through the air. The only light I could see came from the streetlamps, and in tiny flakes looked golden in their glow. No one else was awake, so I snuck outside.

The first thing I noticed was the cold. It was bitterly cold, and my worn pajamas did little to protect me from the sting. My teeth were chattering within a second of stepping outside the door, and the snow was freezing on my bare feet. I was certain my lips were blue from cold. I was about to turn around and scurry inside, but then my eyes looked up and saw the scene in front of me.

If I'd thought the snow was beautiful when I was watching from behind the kitchen window, there were no words to describe it now. The tiny frozen flecks spiraled and danced and swirled through the wintery air, delicate and pure and perfect. They were so small, and so cold; they melted the second they touched my skin. The surface of the snow drifts sparkled like it was made of diamond chips as the light of the full moon hit it. I could see a row of streetlamps as well, and the snowflakes glittered like pure gold when they passed into the light. My breath clouded in front of me and the frosty air bit my lungs, but I barely even noticed the cold, and I didn't much care anyway.

I had no idea how long I'd stood out there, but all too soon, the cold became too much to bear. With a heavy sigh, I stole back inside, a kind of giddy happiness rising in my chest from the utter beauty of the blizzard.

We hadn't had a good snow since then, and I missed the fluffy white stuff. Even though it was cold and wet, it was so lovely that I wished for it every winter. I let my thoughts wander as I laid the mismatched forks on the table. It was a rickety old thing, and one leg was shorter than the others. Charles had placed a folded-up rag underneath it in the hopes of balancing the table out. It was working pretty well, but soon we'd have to fix it for real, since the leg was about to come clean off. The forks slid a little toward that side when I put them down, but they stayed put when I slid a napkin under them.

Before I started on making breakfast, I went to check on Robin and Lily. They were pretty good at getting themselves ready, but they still needed help for some things. Lily hadn't yet figured out how to tie her shoelaces and Robin always wanted an extra opinion on her hair. It was wild and curly, so she wrestled with it every morning.

I walked in to find them almost completely ready to go, surprisingly. Lily's shoes still needed tying, but that was it. Robin was still fussing with her curls as I bent down and took care of Lily's shoes.

"Lizzy, would you braid our hair?" asked Lily, Robin echoing her plea. They both turned to me with the puppy-dog face – the one they knew I could never resist.

"Sure, who's first?"

Lily was closer to me and she was tugging on my arm asking me to do hers first anyway, so I did. She always liked a simple French braid, and Robin preferred a Dutch braid that started at her right ear and ended at the left side of her neck. I'd gotten pretty good at both over the years, but somehow I could never do my own hair.

It didn't take me long to finish their hair, and I headed over to check on the boys.

"No, that's not how you do it. Let me help you," chirped Barney, walking over to a struggling Ted and Marshall. Neither of them could tie their ties, but somehow 8-year-old Barney knew how.

Instantly, I felt a pang of guilt for leaving Barney to get them ready so I hurried over and got Marshall's tie all fixed while Barney took care of Ted's. I was sure the boys would be okay now though, so I headed back into the kitchen and started on breakfast.

Eggs were rationed because of the war, but today was one of those special days every six week or so that I let the kids have an egg for breakfast. They didn't take long to cook either, and when the kids walked out, they all found a hot egg waiting on their plate, along with a small glass of milk, something we almost never got. A smile spread over my face when theirs lit up with surprise and glee, and before I could even blink they were sitting down at the table and wolfing down breakfast. Good thing too; we were close to running late.

"Time to go," I told them, clearing their empty plates and glasses from the table while they pulled on their coats. I hurriedly shooed them out the door, making sure to lock it on my way out. We were running a tad late, but we'd make it on time if we hurried.

The air was cool and humid from yesterday's rain, but it was a little better once we were out of the shadows and into the sun. The walk to school didn't take very long at all, and before I knew it the six of us were approaching the building. It was right then that I saw a familiar face. Peter Pevensie himself.

His blonde hair was little mussed, like he'd just woken up, but he looked neat other than that. I rather liked his hair like that, it was cute. A cheeky little grin was on his face, making him even more adorable.

"Hi there," I called to him, a smile on my face.

"Hey. These must be your siblings."

"Yeah, and who are you?" Barney puffed his chest out in an attempt to look like an intimidating big brother. I hid an amused grin, and the way Peter's eyes were sparkling, I knew he was too. It was so endearing to see Barney trying to be all tough in front of Peter. I gestured to Peter as I introduced him.

"This is my friend, Peter. Peter, this is Barney, Robin, Marshall, Lily, and Ted," I said, indicating each one as I said their name. The girls smiled and waved, Barney continued with his big brother impersonation, and Marshall and Ted put on friendly smiles.

"Pleased to meet ya," chimed Marshall, a goofy grin spreading from oversized ear to oversized ear. Peter smiled kindly at him and shook his hand. At least I think he did; Marshall's hand was so much smaller than Peter's that it disappeared completely within the handshake.

"Want to walk with us the rest of the way to school?" Ted had a grin similar to Barney's on his 5-year-old face. Peter looked at me, silently asking permission. He was such a gentleman… I gave a tiny nod to tell him I was fine with it, and so there were seven of us walking toward school.

"Okay guys, be good today." And with a kiss on each of their foreheads, I sent them off. The five of them waved cheerily before disappearing into the school building. I watched them go before turning to Peter. Only I couldn't think of anything to say. And neither could he, apparently.

"Um-"

"So-"

We both let out a laugh and the awkward tinge in the air lessened considerably.

"So, off to school?" I asked.

"I'm afraid so. Enjoy the store, and tell me all about the bread stand." Peter playfully nudged my shoulder, a gesture I quickly reflected right back at him.

"So I'll see you later, same time as yesterday?"

Peter nodded and waved goodbye, still smiling as he turned and walked away. I couldn't help the grin on my face as I made my way to work for what was sure to be another slightly frustrating day.

My pace was brisk and with good reason; I'd be late if I didn't hurry it up. Losing this job twice in the same month was definitely **not** on my list of things to do. I went from a power-walk to a jog, throwing open the door and skidding inside just as my boss appeared from the back.

"Good, you're here. First one." To my everlasting shock, he was actually sober today – or right now, at least. He was already making a beeline for the whiskey.

"Well let's take role: you, me, and the whiskey. Yep, I think we're all accounted for." Maybe saying that was not the smartest idea I've ever had, but it slipped out before I could take it back.

"Ha. You're a feisty one, aren't you?" His sickly sweet voice mocked the tone I'd taken, but he gave up trying to sound like me, since his voice squeaked when he did.

"The truck's here, so get out back and unload," he barked, taking a healthy swig from his whiskey bottle, earning him a good roll of the eyes from me. Luckily, he was too preoccupied with his drink to notice. I was about to unload the first box, when a glint caught my eye.

I frowned, curious. I set the box down and walked over to the edge of the door where it had come from. I didn't see anything…wait, there was something. I bent down to get a closer look, puzzlement engrained on my face. My hand searched for the thing, and it brushed against cool glass. My fingers searched for a hold, and wrapped around a slender tube-shaped thing. What was it? I lifted it and held it in the light so I could see it better.

It looked like some sort of vial. It was made of glass, a beautiful, marbled glass that sparkled in the sun like a precious jewel. There was a small, diamond-shaped stopper at one end, and the other end was rounded off. The glass was clear, but had a very slight icy blue tint to it.

I had no idea how it had gotten here, but it was pretty. I shrugged and tucked it into my pocket. The girls might like it.

The day passed like any other, as did the next, and the next. Soon weeks had flown by, and every day was basically the same. I walked the kids to school, Peter was always there to say a quick hello before heading off to school himself, I went to work, and we met up when I got off. Peter had grown on the kids, and they rather liked him. We were all getting to be pretty good friends.

Peter and I were walking down the street back towards home. He still didn't know about my little home situation, and I planned on keeping it that way. I didn't need any sympathy. Peter was in the middle of saying something when a now-familiar sound snaked its way through the air.

"Come…home…"

"So do you want-"

"Shh. Did you hear that?" I shushed Peter as nicely as I could, my blood running cold when the whisper didn't stop repeating itself. Peter was looking at me like I'd gone mental, so I guess he couldn't hear it. It seemed to be coming from an alley to our right.

"Liz? Are you alright?"

I didn't think to respond; I just started down the alleyway, determined to find out what in the name of hell was making that creepy little sound. Peter followed me, but I was too preoccupied in keeping myself from screaming to acknowledge him. The whisper kept getting louder and louder, until I closed my eyes and clamped my hands over my ears, unable to stand it any longer. I felt Peter's hand on my shoulder, heard him let out a surprised gasp and felt a strange pinching sensation.

Confused, I cracked my eyes open, only to gasp aloud myself. What had happened to the alley we'd been in only a second ago? I looked to Peter, whose face was a mixture of shock, confusion, and…joy. Like he'd been here before and knew exactly where we were.

"You know where we are, don't you?" I whispered. He nodded, his eyes wide.

"Narnia."

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><p><strong>Now if you wouldn't mind reviewing the chapter it would be <strong>**legendary. ****I promise I will work on updating faster thank you for your support and reading our story it means a lot to us.**


	5. Chapter 4

Princess Ariel -Awww, that was a cute chapter:) Thats interesting that she remembers narnia, well, sort of, i guess :P

Thank you I hope you enjoy this chapter to.

Gentle Blossom - Aww. I can just picture five-year-old Ted! I just love little boys. And Yea! They're finally in Narnia! Please update soon.

Thank you, ted was one of my favorite character to create

eowyninlove - haha, I didn't notice that about the names being from how I met your mother, this makes me smile:) good chapter! So does she remember anything about narnia? hmmm...

I'm obsessed with that show right now so I borrowed the names.

princess emma of narnia-update asap

oooh tay

midnightsnow18 -I have been thoroughly enjoying the story so far; but I can't help but point out the fact that, since this is after Prince Caspian, Peter isn't supposed to be able to go back to Narnia. Besides that, I have found this story to be very interesting and can't wait to read more.

Its to add tension

MCH - Narnia they have arrived so the adventure can begin. Come home very very spooky.

Love all the details on her family they are all great characters. I can really see they clearly.

Please keep updating.

_ Thank you its fun to write about them._

_In case you wondering I don't own Narnia_

_Trees. Lots of trees. Big trees too._

I guess we were in, or near, a forest, but my thoughts were so scattered and disjointed from pure and utter shock that I spent what felt like several lifetimes just commenting to myself about the big trees. Peter, on the other hand, started walking into the forest, woods, whatever, and seemed almost at home. But me? I obviously had no idea where the bloody hell I – we – were, so I stayed right where I was and just looked around this strange place.

We were standing in the middle of a small field, surrounded on all sides by the trees I kept internally babbling about. The grass here was the greenest I'd ever seen, and the cutest little white flowers dotted the edges of the woods wherever a ray of sun hit the forest floor. I half expected little bunny rabbits to jump out of the grass, but nothing of the sort happened. The only wildlife I could see was the birds, chirping and tweeting as they flew through the treetops.

I was still surveying everything when Peter noticed I hadn't moved and turned around.

"Aren't you coming?"

_Are you bloody mental?_

"Coming where? Where are we? Why am I here and please tell me I'm not going crazy because I think I am!" My voice rose in pitch until it was a panicked squeak. Hysteria was rapidly rising in my chest and I was just about to lose it when Peter strode over, concern on his face. He put his hands on my trembling shoulders and looked right into my eyes.

"Lizzy, listen to me carefully and try to stay calm. We are in a magical world called Narnia and I don't know why we're here since I wasn't supposed to return."

I managed a tight nod to show I understood, though my pulse was still racing. But I listened as he continued.

"Now it's going to get dark before too much longer and I know a place we can stay. It's not far from here and we should get there soon." His voice helped soothe me a little, but come on; I still wasn't entirely at ease. I just got plopped down in the middle of nowhere, thank you very much! Peter had turned around and was walking away into the forest again.

"Wait, so you've been here before?"

Peter ignored my question and just motioned for me to follow him, not stopping.

"What did you do to get banished?" I yelled after him, my arms crossed across my chest and my feet still firmly planted on the ground – with no intention of moving. He turned around and looked at me, seeming ever-so-slightly annoyed that I still hadn't moved.

"I wasn't banished, I just wasn't supposed to return. I'm actually a king here. High King Peter the Magnificent."

"Quite the title you got there," I muttered, hesitantly starting after him. If I wanted to get back to reality, I'd probably have to follow him. I didn't want to be stranded on my own out here.

We walked along in silence for a little while, and I made sure to take in everything. I still wasn't entirely at ease here, despite Peter's reassuring. But the scenery, I must admit, was quite pleasant, and unlike any place I'd ever seen. It was so peaceful and I found myself stopping occasionally to look at the little white flowers. My pulse even stopped roaring in my ears, though my thoughts were still a little scattered.

Peter had been right about it getting dark; the sun was starting to sink below the tree line and its rays now had a red tinge to them. Pink and purple and orange all mixed together in the evening sky and the clouds seemed to be painted in watercolor. It crossed my mind that maybe I'd be able to see the stars here, since there didn't seem to be any dirty smoke or streetlights to blot them out.

Just as I was starting to relax a bit, I heard someone coming and immediately pulled my switchblade from my shoe; old habits die hard. But I almost dropped my knife in my shock when a huge horse-man-thing appeared from the trees and bowed to Peter.

_Big horsie. Very big horsie. Big man too. They're kinda connected. That's weird…_

"Hello, your Majesty. What brings you back so soon?" the large creature asked him.

"Hello Jaystorm. I'm not entirely sure, actually. And this is Lizzy."

The horse-man approached me and I somehow found the guts to reach out and shake his hand. He looked rather confusedly at the hand-shake though, so I dropped my hand. His gaze shifted to my right hand, which was still clutching my knife so tightly that my knuckles were white.

"It's alright Lizzy; no one is going to hurt you. You can put your blade away now. Jaystorm and I are old friends." Peter tried to calm me down, and I hesitantly closed my knife, but put it in my pocket so it'd be easy to reach if needed. Not wanting to look like a weak and frightened child, I smiled.

"We were just on our way to the castle, if you'd like to join us," Peter said to Jaystorm. Jaystorm nodded and the three of us set off again. The two of them gabbed about a guy and a girl, but I really wasn't listening. I just trailed behind them, on my guard for anything else that might jump out at us while still enjoying the view of the forest. Its beauty had a calming effect on my jumpy nerves.

After what felt like an eternity, we came up on a (rather intimidating if you ask me) stone castle. We were walking through what I was guessing were some sort of training grounds. People and creatures like Jaystorm, as well as man-goat things, were swinging swords at each other and others fired arrows at bulls eyes.

"Peter? You're back!" shrieked a girl as she ran up. If there's one thing I noticed, it was the hair.

_Pale green hair? What is this, a bloody circus?_

Peter looked up and grinned as the girl rushed up and hugged him.

"That I am. Laurah, this is Lizzy," Peter said, looking back at me.

"Hey Lizzy. As Peter said, I'm Laurah." She smiled and held out her hand, and I shook it. At least someone here knew what shaking hands meant. Laurah was a pretty girl with friendly eyes, though I was still wondering if I was imagining the hair.

"Nice to meet you," I replied, with a small smile of my own.

"Are you from England too? 1940s?"

"Um, yeah, how did you know?" I'm not gonna lie; I found it a little unnerving that she knew exactly where and when I was from.

"Peter told me about England and all the last time he was here, and since you two arrived together, I guessed you were from the same time and place."

"Well, you guessed right."

Laurah grinned before turning to Peter.

"I don't mean to be rude, but what are you doing here? I thought you weren't supposed to return."

"Well to be honest, I'm not sure. One minute we were in England and the next we're in Narnia."

I noticed something sparkling on Laurah's left hand, and soon figured out it was an emerald ring.

"Beautiful ring," I interjected, though neither she nor Peter seemed to mind. She blushed slightly and murmured a 'thank you' as Peter smiled at her like he already knew what was going on. Which, on second thought, he probably did.

"Yeah, Caspian proposed by the way." I'm not even kidding when I say Laurah's face positively glowed at the thought of her Prince Charming, which I'm sure this Caspian-guy was.

"Congratulations Laurah, that's wonderful!" Peter's face brightened at the good news and even I had to smile.

"Oooh, and speaking of Caspian I should probably let him now you're here." Laurah turned to Jaystorm, whose face now looked mischievous as he met her look.

"Jaystorm, could you please show them the way to dinner?"

"Hm, well let me think about it, and I'll let you know in a few hours." His eyes twinkled with obvious delight at the chance to annoy her, and it crossed my mind that if he wasn't half-horse, I'd have thought they were brother and sister.

Laurah didn't say anything; she cleared her throat and shot him a very sarcastic look, to which he responded with a chuckle and shooing her off with a wink. She shook her head, seemingly fighting a laugh, and trotted off to find her fiancée.

I, on the other hand, was standing there frozen, still ill at ease, scared, and confused. I tried to hide it, but Peter saw right through my phony smile.

"Are you alright, Lizzy? You seem tense."

It crossed my mind that I might be overreacting, but honestly! One minute I'm in England and the next I'm in an entirely new world; what was I supposed to feel like?

"Yeah, I guess I'm just a little spooked is all." Taking a deep breath, I followed Peter and Jaystorm as they walked toward the castle.

We had to go through a small village and then cross a bridge to get to the castle. The castle seemed to be perched on a big stone island, only without the moat I was expecting. No crocodiles either. I didn't take much notice of things now; I was too busy keeping my sanity intact. I did, however, notice the many stares our little trio attracted, and when I looked down at my clothes, I realized why.

Obviously, I wasn't dressed like a…what was the word Peter had used? Oh right, Narnian. I was dressed like any normal, 1940s English girl would be. Which wasn't at all how people dressed here. (I was pleased to see that there were plenty of humans here.) Here, it seemed that girls wore, heaven help me, floor length dresses. Not that I have anything in particular against the things, I'm just not fond of them, especially since long skirts only get in the way.

I was so immersed in my thoughts that I barely noticed when we'd arrived at the… you know, I'm just going to call it the dining hall, since that seems fitting. The place was huge; it must have been bigger than my family's entire living space doubled. Of course, this was a castle, not employee's quarters in England.

In the middle of the room was a long and polished wood table; it was a dark wood too, lending it a regal look. We were just about to sit down when Laurah entered through some double doors near the head of the table with a boy. Or young man, rather. And let me just say: he was hot. Dark brown hair, big brown eyes just as dark, and just a little scruff all combined in this guy I was assuming was Caspian, if the way him and Laurah were holding hands was any indication of who he was.

Laurah used her eyes rather than her voice to send Caspian over to meet me, and I had to smile at his slight reluctance to leave her side. But he wiped any traces of that off his face by the time he'd approached me, bowing as he introduced himself.

"I'm Caspian, and you must be Lizzy."

I smiled and managed a curtsey – without wobbling.

"Yep, pleased to meet you."

We took our seats at the table: Peter and myself on one side, and Laurah and Caspian across from us. Before we did though, I caught Laurah and Caspian sharing a glance. The loving look they shared wasn't lost on me, and I instantly felt a twinge of jealousy. I wanted someone to look at me like that; like I was the only person in the entire world.

Dinner was almost silent at first, but then Peter, Laurah, and Caspian all started reminiscing and catching up on the details of what had happened in Peter's absence. I wasn't really paying attention until a rather peculiar question from Peter snapped me from my little la-la land.

"Oh and Laurah, you haven't tried assassinating anyone lately, have you?"

It took every ounce of self-control I possessed not to laugh out loud when Laurah glowered at him, a fake smile plastered on her face. I could tell she was fighting the urge to throw her own sarcastic comment back at him, and I suspect she was even considering throwing a forkful of food at him too. Egging her on was extraordinarily tempting, but I decided to just let things play out.

"For your information, Peter, I have actually improved on that archery." One of her eyebrows was arched and her face bore the epitome of all sarcastic expressions.

"Well seeing as if you almost killed just about everybody in this room trying to learn, I didn't think it could get any worse," he teased.

I noticed Caspian's hand start to inch toward Laurah's, as if to stop her from starting the food fight I was sure she was itching to. But I was surprised at her self-control; she merely sent Peter a scathing look before joining him and Caspian in laughing.

Peter noticed my amused but slightly confused look.

"Caspian, why don't you tell Lizzy about that little training session?"

"When Laurah was first learning archery, she completely missed the target and almost hit me."

"That was day 1 and completely on accident! And besides, it's not like you minded a lot." Laurah's face was getting redder by the second, and both the guys were laughing, and Laurah and I quickly joined them.

"And why didn't I mind, my lady?" Caspian managed to slip out amid his chuckles.

"I think we both know that you were considering kissing me after chivalrously helping me out."

I arched an eyebrow at Laurah's flirtatious little smirk she aimed at her fiancée, and fought a giggle when the tips of Caspian's ears turned pink. The rest of dinner passed similarly, with much teasing and laughter, and a very brief overview of my life story – I kept all the important things to myself. Not to be secretive or anything, but…okay fine, maybe secretive is the right word. But still, they didn't seem to notice, so it was all good.

Once dinner was over, we split up: Caspian said he would show Peter his room and Laurah would show me mine.

"So I'll see you tomorrow?" I asked Peter. Of the three of them, I knew him best.

"Bright and early," he assured me, giving my hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Goodnight then."

"Goodnight Lizzy."

Both of us waited a second while Laurah and Caspian said their goodnights, and looked away with a small smile when they shared a quick kiss. They were so cute as a couple. I was looking forward to getting to know them better, especially Laurah. It would be nice to have a sister-type figure while I was here.

"Coming Lizzy?" Laurah gestured for me to follow her with a smile and tilt of her head.

"Yep, I'm right behind ya."

She led me out of the dining hall, as I called it, and we walked down the hall in silence. I would have been content to leave it that way, but I realized that these people were opening up their home to me and I was being rather rude.

"Laurah?"

"Yes?" I was happy there wasn't anything but kindness in her tone.

"I'm sorry I was so unpleasant today, it's just that I'm not used to being treated as an equal. Foster child, you know?"

"Don't worry about it; I imagine you've had a pretty stressful day," she replied with a gentle smile. "A good night's sleep should help you relax."

By now we'd arrived at my room, and I couldn't stop a smile from forming on my face when we entered.

"Well, here we are." Laurah noticed my smile. "What are you thinking about, Lizzy?"

"Well, at home I share a room and even a bed with my two sisters, but here I get this whole room to myself," I responded.I looked over and expected her to laugh at me, but instead she just smiled, gave me clean clothes, and then left.

The room was much larger than I was used to, but it wasn't too big either – just the right size to be both comfortable and spacious. It had a cheery sort of atmosphere and a bed with crisp white sheets stood on my right. Across the room were a wardrobe and a dresser, with nightstands on either side of the bed. There was a candle on one of the nightstands, in case I wanted to get up during the night I guess.

I **was** pretty tired, so I just crawled into the bed, deciding to really explore tomorrow. I also decided to hide my stress and just try to be pleasant from now on. And just as I was starting to relax, my calm was interrupted.

My blood froze in my veins as the same whisper I'd been hearing for the past week slithered through the peaceful night air. An involuntary shiver coursed through me, though I was more annoyed than scared. I just wanted a decent night's sleep; was that really so much to ask? Never mind that the whisper was downright creepy; it was disrupting my inner zen!

A small giggle escaped my lips. At least I could make light of the situation instead of being scared out of my wits. Eventually, sleep found its way to me and I readily succumbed, hoping for sweet dreams. But I found only nightmares.

I was crashing through a bright green forest, running from something I couldn't see. I wasn't sure what exactly I was running from, but something kept me going. My lungs begging for air, I skidded to a halt on the edge of a cliff, cursing my luck when I tripped…right off the edge. I could hear the roar of the rapidly-approaching rough water, could feel myself falling. And just before I hit, I sprang awake in a cold sweat.


End file.
